Just Wanna Be Somebody
by ShinyShiny9
Summary: Everyone knows about the main heroes of Ninjago: the ninja, Samurai X, Sensei Wu. They do a good job fighting evil, and their stories will probably last throughout Ninjago's history. But this story is about one of the forgotten heroes . . . the one who didn't even realize he was doing the right thing until it was all over.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Well, this is a story about a character who probably got something like forty seconds of screen time in Episode 28, "The Art of the Silent Fist." But man, he used every single one of those forty seconds to win me over, and I just had to write a story for him. **

**Can we get a round of applause for the scrappy little short guy in the front row?**

* * *

Alive. I think I'm . . . alive.

It's so new. Everything around me swims, blurry and surreal. I've never actually _seen_ before, it's taking a while to get the hang of it. A world . . . I'm in a big wide world . . .

I look down at my body. It's metal, I think. There's black cloth covering most of it. I bring up my hand, feel my face. I have an eye, and . . . and something else. A cold mechanical thing.

I am a Nindroid. I was designed by PIXAL, created to serve the Overlord. There are more like me, and together we will fight for our master, so he may rise to power over Ninjago. Our primary enemy is something called "ninja."

A sharp whistle sounds, and I know it means I must get into formation. I run to join my brothers, Nindroids just like me. Well . . . mostly.

I stand by the nearest Nindroid, and look up at him. _Up_. He's taller than me, by almost a head. All around me, all the Nindroids are the same height . . . all taller than me. Is that normal? As we get our orders I look around cautiously, but there are no short Nindroids. That's funny.

We go to fight. We fight the ninja and their friends at some out-of-the-way training school. They look like us, kind of, but organic and not nearly as well-designed. But they're all taller than me too . . . is that a bad thing?

Maybe it is. The other Nindroids give me weird looks sometimes. They always push me out of the way whenever they want to get past me too, but I figure that's just a Nindroid thing. We're tough. I'm tough too, you know. I think.

Oh, and PIXAL betrayed us. We were all invisible so we could sneak up on the ninja, but we saw it happen. That other Nindroid, the one in white who is a ninja instead of a servant to the Overlord—he hacked into PIXAL's system by touching her with a strange bladelike weapon, and she switched to their side. What a filthy traitor, turning on the Overlord like that. He will not be pleased.

Word travels fast among the Nindroids, since we are all a little interconnected. The name of PIXAL is soon spat upon whenever mentioned. She has become one of them, has even been seen with that enemy Nindroid, Zane. Turncoat.

But I stay out of the conversations, mostly, because the others talk over my head. I try to join once, when they're saying something about PIXAL, but all I can make are strange squeaky electronic sounds. At first I think that's just what it sounds like in your head when you talk, and that it sounds normal to everyone else, but then I see they're giving me weird looks again.

"Something in your throat?" asks one of them roughly.

I shake my head hard and try to make them understand, waving my arms, but they just laugh and turn back to their conversation.

"Go get a proper voicebox installed, runt," someone tells me.

I go and ask, but they're all out of new voiceboxes for Nindroids. Even if they weren't, they say I'm too short and just wouldn't be able to fit a voicebox inside me properly anyway. Mine was probably working fine when they gave it to me, and look what happened.

For a while I try to find some quiet places to go and practice speaking, but still the only sounds I can make are those horrible whistles and beeps. Soon I stop trying. Someone might hear me.

The ninja escaped from us that one time. We don't want that to happen again, and the Overlord knows what they will be trying next—they'll want to shut down Ninjago's power, to disable him. Some of us Nindroids are assigned to guard the power core of Ninjago, the source of energy that powers all the new electrical devices in the land. It powers all of us Nindroids too, even that traitor PIXAL. Our master wishes for us to protect it, and to be honest, we all desperately want to protect it anyway. That thing is our lifeblood.

I'm so proud that I was chosen to be in the battalion of core guards. This has got to be the biggest moment of my (not very long yet) life! Maybe it's a little silly, but I can't help but dream that this will be my big chance to prove myself. Maybe I'll show them that I can be just as good as them, even if I'm a little on the small side. Maybe I'll fight bravely, just as well as the others. Maybe I'll save a fellow-Nindroid's life with my heroic battle skills! Maybe I'll even corner those ninjas, fight them hand-to-hand, take them down and force them to surrender!

. . . Man, would the others laugh if they knew what I was thinking.

We arrive for duty at the central substation, a tall tower at the center of Ninjago's storm farms. The base of the tower is just a tall, thick pole, with a cylindrical balcony perched way up on the top. In a room at the center of this cylinder lies Ninjago's power core, processing all the electricity farmed from the lightning strikes that riddle the atmosphere in this part of Ninjago. Then this energy is sent all over Ninjago, to power cars and streetlights and buildings and robots—like us!

I can't help it. I just have to go and take a peek at the core, just for a second before we go on duty. When nobody's looking, I scurry to the door of the substation core room, slide it open just a teeny bit, and peer through.

It's _beautiful. _The room is round and dim, with all kinds of control panels and switches glinting murkily around the edges, but in the center, an enormous, glowing beam of blue-white light stretches from the ceiling to the floor. This is the core, the source of Ninjago's energy. A clear barrier that looks like glass surrounds the column, protecting both it and those who go near it—the amount of power flowing through that pillar of light is unimaginably massive.

For a while I just stand and stare at the core, ignoring the lightning strikes in the sky and the rough calls of the other Nindroids. So this is what I'm protecting from the ninja? Wow . . . talk _about_ an honor. Seeing the core in all its glory only makes me more determined to keep it safe.

Pretty soon the familiar whistle rings out. Giving the core one last reverent glance, I slide the door closed and rush to fall in line.


	2. Chapter 2

Soon we're all on review. General Cryptor, our brave leader, stalks down the line, telling us our mission.

"Keep your eyes out for ninja," he booms in his deep, echoing voice. "The Overlord says they are sure to be coming."

So we really are going to see action now. I stand up straight and try not to daydream; I have to be ready, and tough, and strong, and . . .

General Cryptor has stopped right in front of me.

"Look at you," he booms gruffly, sounding amused. "Last one off the factory line. Ran out of metal, hmm?"

I nod a little, trying to look convincingly tough, but he only chuckles and _pats me on the head_.

"I will call you 'Mindroid'," he announces, and my heart—or whatever I have in place of one—sinks straight down to the bottom of the tower. There's a strange warmth in my face—I think my processors are overheating. It feels awful.

I probably shouldn't. It's probably against the rules. But I suddenly get so mad, I can't help but stand right up straight and tell General Cryptor just what I think of that nickname—and it doesn't matter anyway, because I sound like a broken car alarm and everyone bursts out laughing. As we turn and move out to our guard stations, I can hear the others' laughter still rattling behind me and feel my face burning.

Oh, they'll see. So what if I'm small? I'm—I'm just as good as them! I'll prove it! They'll be sorry they laughed then. When I become the greatest Nindroid hero ever, they'll all be scrambling to say that they believed in me all along, and I'll just say—

I'll just squeak like a little idiot. Oh . . . what's the use?

I'm not about to tag along with the others like a little kid, so I wander around the outskirts of the balcony, peering up and down and all around, keeping a sharp eye out for the ninja and muttering angrily to myself in little warbles. The storm is loud enough that maybe nobody will hear me.

. . . But there is something that _I_ hear. Some of the other Nindroids are nearby, talking together, but I can hear another sound mixed in with the crack of lightning and roar of thunder. _Voices_. Human ones.

I turn around and listen closer. The voices seem to be coming from inside the tower, in the room where the substation core is kept! But nobody's supposed to be there. It must be—

Oh _no_. I feel my one eye fly open wide. How did they get in without us noticing?! We have to act fast! Without even thinking, I whip out my sword and brandish it, ready to fight.

One of the other Nindroids hears the swish of metal and whirls around. He understands at once.

"_Ninja!_"

We fall into line and circle around to the door of the power room. I'm at the front. I'm actually leading the line into battle against the ninja! Me! _Wow._

General Cryptor comes stalking up to see what the fuss is, and everyone else snaps back into a respectful row, as if they were on review. But I'm the one who found the ninja, so I'm the one who's gotta tell General Cryptor! I'm so excited, I don't even care that I'm making a fool of myself, pointing at the door and whistling and burbling a mile a minute. They're in there! They're in there! Don't you get it? We've gotta—

General Cryptor just shoves me aside roughly, and the floor hurts more than it should.

"Knock, Knock," he booms sarcastically, preparing to bash the door in. Meanwhile, all I can do is stumble to my feet, hot with rage. It was _me_ who found the ninja. And it's about time I got due freakin' credit.

Suddenly there's a metallic clang just inches away from me. I whirl around, and there's that traitor: PIXAL.

All of us Nindroids roar with fury—she has a lot of nerve, showing her face here now! What is she trying to do, help those filthy ninja again? General Cryptor fires a beam of energy at her, but she dodges the ensuing fireball. I have to dodge too, because I'm so close to her—but I can already hear alarms going off inside the building, triggered by the ruckus. Blast it! The ninja will know we're onto them now!

Everyone charges for PIXAL. I jump aside so as not to get trampled, but while I'm trying to fight my way to the front and get her, I notice the door to the power room suddenly sliding open. Wha—why would the ninja—?

No time to ask questions. Time to show them what I can do! I lunge for the open doorway—and nearly get bowled over by a taller white form, darting _out_ of the door. Startled, I stumble and more or less fall on my face through the open doorway, hearing it slam behind me.

I'm inside! I sit up and look around, momentarily puzzled, then spring to my feet and grab my sword. They're here, I'm here. Just me. My secret dream is actually coming true, and I'm ready to fight.

"Aww, great!" groans one of them, his voice strange and malformed like all organics'. "Now they come in Fun Size!"

Ohhhhh, that _does_ it.

* * *

I can hear a lot of fighting going on outside. The white form must have been one of the ninja fleeing. Well nevermind him, I'm going to take down these three and the girl, all by myself. I'm not scared—I was built to do this! Seizing my sword, I begin to whirl around, swinging the deadly blade in wide arcs, forcing the ninja to back up against the clear barrier protecting the power core.

"Hack it with the Techno Blade!" shouts the one in the red suit. One of his friends tries, but I just whack aside the twirling nanchuks with my sword, no problem. Ha! Take that!

"I'm trying!" protests the nanchuk-wielder, and his annoyance is the best thing I've heard in my life. "Gotta hand it to the little runt—he doesn't know when to quit!"

I freeze. That's the one word that no Nindroid will ever tolerate.

"QUIT?"

The ninja stare at me for a moment. Heck, I'm a little surprised too. I _spoke!_ I really truly spoke, for the first time ever! Maybe something got rearranged when General Cryptor pushed me, or when I fell through the door . . . ?

But this is not the time to get excited. I fire off a bolt of energy from my bionic eye, ready to destroy this ninja for daring to tell me to quit.

He dodges. They always do, the scum. Instead, my energy beam strikes the barrier protecting the core. That . . . may not have been a good idea . . .

Without warning, the red one suddenly jumps in to replace his friend.

"Hey, half-pint!" he calls mockingly. "Over here!"

Yeah, maybe not very smart of me, but I fire again. Right now, I'm too angry to think of anything but destroying these ninja—and I _will_ destroy them. I _will_. There's a sudden commotion behind me, and I hear a swarm of other Nindroids charging into the room. They must have opened the door!

No. No, they will _not_ take this moment away from me. I might never get another chance like this!

I keep firing, but now all the others are attacking too. The ninja leap back and forth, bouncing around each other and shifting rapidly from place to place, dodging streams of laser fire.

Well, they can't dodge forever. If this keeps up, I really am going to lose my moment. This could be my last chance, my _last_ chance to prove myself. I can't lose it.

So I leap. I spring right from the front of the battle line, and aim a kick straight at the blue ninja's head. This is it . . . my big chance . . .

He dodges.

The world seems to fall out from around me. I hear a smashing sound, and feel my body strike a barrier and pass through. I turn, ready to keep fighting . . .

And then I realize I'm standing inside the core. I must have crashed through the weakened protective barrier around it, because now the beam of unimaginable energy that keeps all of Ninjago running is shining down on me like a searing blue spotlight.

It hurts. It hurts. It hurts _so much_. It's lifting me, tearing me, spinning me around, ripping me apart, pouring more energy into me than even a city could ever use. I can't . . . I can't take this . . .

I almost scream. Almost. But suddenly, everything seems to stop. My body hangs suspended in the beam of energy, my eye flies open wide, and I see the other Nindroids staring at me in horror. They won't see me be weak. Never. I swallow hard and stutter out a strangled "Uh-oh"—and then my body is blown to atoms.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: A big thank you to everyone who's reviewed! ^_^**

**Annnnd I get the feeling this last chapter is going to be somewhat inaccurate, now that episodes 29 and 30 are out—it was written before they were released, though. Kinda like all the TechnoShipping stories don't quite match episode 29. **

**Well, with any luck eventually I'll be able to actually find an English version of those episodes, and then we'll see what's what. But hey, if they managed to bring the little guy back after an explosion like that—you won't hear me complaining. :P**

* * *

Gotta admit, I'm kind of surprised. For a moment after the explosion, everything still hurt like crazy—and then I stopped feeling anything—and I thought that was it, the end, forever—but now I'm pretty sure I feel something hard underneath me. And cold, and a little rough.

I open my eye. Sure enough, I'm lying facedown on solid rock. Rolling over and sitting up, I look around. It's eerie—all over, as far as the eye can see, the landscape is solid gray rock. No trees or grass, none of the organic stuff. All gray. And the sky is a different shade of cloudy gray, the kind that doesn't look like it's ever going to clear up. So . . . this is where Nindroids go when they're deactivated.

As a metallic breeze blows against my face, I squint all around, wondering if I'll see some of the Nindroids who were destroyed fighting the ninja a few days ago. Sure enough, off in the distance I see some dark black specks, glinting sharply against the gray rock. Well, better than being lonely! And since my voicebox is working now, I'll be able to talk to them!

Scrambling to my feet, I lope quickly towards the group of Nindroids in the distance, smiling just a little. But as I get closer, my smile starts to fade, until finally it's entirely gone. There are _more_ of them now. Even as I watch, a half-dozen more Nindroids materialize in various places, like puffs of soot that suck together into a solid form instead of spreading out. And they're the same ones I was fighting alongside with back at the substation! More and more of them are popping up everywhere, faster and faster. Why? Why are so many Nindroids being deactivated at once?

Another Nindroid shimmers into existence right nearby. I run up to him, my eye wide.

"What's happening? Why are so many of us getting deactivated?" I call.

"What kind of a question is that?" grumbles the Nindroid, checking if he's all there and dusting himself off. "We're _all _getting deactivated, thanks to—" Suddenly his eye snaps up to stare at me. "YOU!"

I freeze.

"Uh . . . me?"

"_This is your fault!_" bellows the Nindroid, taking a step towards me. I blink up at him.

"But . . . but I . . . "

"You fell into the power core, you little idiot!" he snarls, grabbing the front of my shirt and pulling my face up close to his. "Your job was to _protect_ it, and instead you went and destroyed it just like the ninja wanted!"

It hits me like a city bus—when the power core blew me up, I must've blown the power core up too. Back in the real world, the power must be going out all over Ninjago right now, all my Nindroid brothers must be slumping over unconscious as their energy source disappears, the Overlord must be slipping into dormancy again—and it really is all my fault. That horrible sinking feeling is back, only now it's _way_ worse than being called "Mindroid."

"I—I didn't mean to!" I sputter, squirming to get loose from the taller Nindroid's grip. "I was trying to get the ninja and—"

"Pah!" He shoves me back disgustedly. "You think it matters what you were trying to do? You've ruined the Overlord's plans. _Traitor._"

My breath catches.

"I—"

"Shut up," he snaps, and turns away. I scramble to my feet and dash to another Nindroid I recognize from the substation.

"Is it true? Is the power really—"

"You've got a lot of nerve asking," he says coldly. "Get lost."

"I swear, it was an accident!" I protest, spreading my hands desperately. "I didn't mean to do it, really!"

But by now, several other Nindroids are gathering around me, hatred burning in their red eyes.

"Listen, runt," growls one of them, stroking the hilt of his sword meaningfully. "You got out of your place. Out of line, you understand? Now you've blown our master's entire plan, and you're not fit to be called one of us anymore. You know we don't tolerate traitors."

The sword swishes out of its sheath and swings up to point at my face. Its owner glares at me down the length of the blade, daring me to make a move, daring me to attack so he can slice me open.

For a moment I stare silently at him and the other Nindroids, also fingering their weapons. A Nindroid never flees a battle. A Nindroid never shows cowardice, or passes up a chance to fight. But . . . a Nindroid wouldn't be a traitor either.

So I turn around and run.

For a while there's nowhere to hide. All the Nindriods in Ninjago are arriving here as the power fails, and everywhere I go they seem to know what I've done. Some ignore me, some shove me, a lot jeer "Traitor, traitor!" I know I deserve it, but—I just want to get away—

Finally I find a cave hollowed out of the rock, and skid deep into the welcoming darkness. Slumping back against the far wall, I let myself slide numbly to the floor, panting. The reality of what I've done crushes down on me harder with every minute. What was I thinking? I should have known better than to try so hard. Me, a stunted little freak, trying to be better than the others—I not only failed my master, I may very well have ruined him, all because of my stupid pride.

A droplet of oil slithers down the side of my face. Great, now my bionic eye must be malfunctioning. I'm just about to try fixing it when a quiet voice comes through the darkness:

"N799?"

I jump. That's my serial number! Nobody's ever called me by that before.

Swiping a sheen of oil from my eye mech, I peer through the darkness—Nindroids have pretty good night vision, especially in the bionic eye. Looks like mine's still working after all. Through the murk, I catch a glint of metallic silvery hair and green glowing eyes.

I'm on my feet in an instant, sword drawn. It's PIXAL.

"Get back!" I growl. "I don't want anything to do with you, you—"

You know what? It's really hard saying "traitor" when people have been throwing the word at _you _for a while.

PIXAL doesn't say anything, doesn't even move. I stare at her through the darkness for a while, and she looks back quietly. At last I gulp, lower my sword, and look away.

"Sorry," I mumble. "I guess you couldn't really help it either."

"Help what?" she asks, her voice mechanically precise but somehow kind.

"You know, being hacked." I slide my sword back into its sheath resignedly. "You didn't choose to help them, you were forced against your will. It was an accident, you're—you're no worse than I am."

"I have heard the others call you a traitor too," says PIXAL, stepping a little closer. "Why?"

I shrug and tell her the story. She looks bitter for just a moment.

"So it is because of you that we are all being deactivated?" she asks at last.

I wince.

"Yes . . . Are you angry?"

She looks away for a moment.

"No, no. I am only remembering someone I left behind. It is nothing, I knew it would have to happen one way or the other."

"That one ninja," I say, understanding. "The one who was a Nindroid, Zane. You miss him?"

She says nothing to confirm it, but nor does she deny it. I raise an eyebrow at her and tap my foot.

"Those circumstances are not relevant," she says at last. "What you did served the greater good. My personal desires are of lesser importance."

"Greater _good?_" I sputter. "I ruined everything!"

"For the Overlord, yes," says PIXAL. "But by aiding the ninjas' cause, you have saved hundreds of innocent human lives. It was a noble thing, even if it was unintentional."

I stare at her disbelievingly.

"You probably will not understand it," she says patiently. "I programmed you to serve the Overlord, just as I was once programmed to serve him. But when my system was rebooted by Zane, I became free of the Overlord's control and saw that his plans were evil. He would harm many, if he rose to power over Ninjago. It is good that you helped to stall him."

I still can't wrap my head around it.

"It might be easier for you to understand if your system was rebooted," offers PIXAL. "Would you like me to?"

For a second I hesitate. I can do either of two things—let PIXAL reboot me and listen to these confusing, possibly traitorous things she is saying, or push her away and go back to being all alone, the enemy of every Nindroid existent.

Hey, what have I got to lose?

"Do it," I say, offering her my hand. "Hack me. And afterwards . . . tell me about this Zane?"

I could have sworn she smiles just a little bit.

* * *

So, that's my life story. Dare I say, it's a short one. But I'm pretty happy with the way it turned out.

Oh, I'm not saying I'm a hero or anything. I didn't even mean to do what I did, and nobody in Ninjago is going to remember me for it. Heck, I wasn't even fighting on the right side when that whole power core thing happened. The ninja and their friends are the ones doing the real work and being the real heroes, and I kind of wish I could've realized that while I was still . . . you know, living.

But in the end, even if it was an accident, I guess I made a bit of a difference. And hey, that's not half-bad—for a Mindroid.


End file.
